The American Dream

It can be argued that the American Dream is dwindling as the country ages. As the country’s population rises, competition becomes more intense. This undoubtedly can make it more difficult to achieve a level of success that was more easily attainable 30 years ago. In addition, the cost of education has gotten so high that many graduates are paying back student loans for years. Many are stuck in a pit of debt that greatly hinders their career and personal goals. Also, rising costs of healthcare make it nearly impossible for some lower-income families to worry about more than keeping their basic needs met. In fact, some millennials are so fed up with current conditions that they completely deny the existence of the modern American Dream. For example, Andy Vasoyan, a 24 year old freelance voice actor and audio producer said, “I feel that the American dream (existed) and then just disappeared into the ether. Right now, because of income inequality and the difficulty of living in urban centers, it’s probably impossible for a huge segment of the population. And I don’t know if it was ever a real thing, but the idea of working

I believe that the millennial America dream is drastically different than many other generations. While previous generations believed that they must own a home in order to achieve the American dream, this dream has drastically changed in recent centuries. I believe this is partially due to how attitudes millennial hold have changed within recent years. I believe that previous generations still withheld the mindset that a marriage and family was the ideal image of the American dream. I believe that previous generations held the mindset that achieving the American dream was simply to be like every other average American family. While I know many American families who live in the same areas and work the same jobs do still indeed have a lot in common and can be identified as all achieving the same American dream; many millennials are choosing different occupations and individuality in their careers. I believe that the millennial age of Americas are very independent and head strong. Being considered almost a millennial myself I see these traits within myself and my peers. I hope to be an independent women and to be able to provide for myself and my family. Through a job in a higher paying career such as nursing I hope I am able to be a sole provider for my household if it is needed. While the help of a husband would be nice I do not want to ever be in the situation of needing a husband to be considered finical stable. I also find this headstrong attitude within millennial when

The American Dream is something I believe is still very much alive in the heart of millennials. The American Dream gives hope to individuals that come from all levels of society. It is the dream of striving for success no matter your color, background, or up-bringing, and knowing in your heart that anything is possible.

The American Dream has long been worshipped and held as an ideal in our nation for decades. One day settling down with a family of four and living in the suburbs was once held as the perfect end to an American fairytale dream, but as the housing crisis of 2008 tore through the market and threatened the dreams of countless families. Unfortunately millennials grew up watching the housing crash tear at the hearts of their parents and threaten to divide families from their homes. As a result, millennials see the American Dream differently than previous generations. Instead of dreaming to one day own a home, millenials see the American Dream as the opportunity for freedom to explore the world and decide where they shall land. The American Dream has changed from the destination to the journey.

The "American Dream" is an idea that has always been different throughouttime. It changes in diverse forms and in the end involves success. The "American Dream" was a phrase used by the American people and peoplewanting to become American. It was always the idea that you can become a success. This is true in a partial way, but the true "American Dream" is that with somework and determination anyone can build themselves up in the economic classsystem.

John Steinbeck, the author of the novella Of Mice and Men, describes a world where the American Dream was about having a opportunity to be successful through all the hard work and dedication. Steinbeck paints a disturbing portrait of America in the 1930’s. Steinbeck reveals that times can be very unpleasant and anything can happen. During the Great Depression it was not very straightforward to obtain your American Dream. There were many obstacles you had to face and problems that came along. You never knew what was next. Social interactions were not always a guarantee neither was family. For instance, in the novella no character truly had a family or a home. When you think of the word lonely what do you think? Do you think of that pain

People cannot achieve the American Dream as a result of obstacles relating to race, gender, and socioeconomic status; this can be rectified by instituting equal housing and service programs nationwide. The racial blockades on the path to reaching the American Dream are apparent throughout the stories of many. The lives of these people are wrought with racism and discrimination, for no reason other than the color of their skin. A plethora of women are also held back and prevented from attaining their goals, as a result of their gender. In each of their unique stories, they are unnecessarily defined by their gender, and averting those women from their objective of the American Dream. Accompanying race and gender, socioeconomic status serves

For generations homeownership has been viewed as one of the cornerstones of the American dream. Nevertheless this American dream has almost exclusively been available to white Americans. However, over the past 25 years this dream has become a reality for more and more Americans as the rise of the subprime mortgage market has allowed the majority of Americans to become homeowners. In 2005, at the peak of the housing bubble, 69.2% of Americans seemed to have achieved the American dream of owning their homes. Three years later, the housing bubble popped and the American economy entered the most severe economic downturn since the Great Depression. The downturn was largely caused by the implosion of the subprime mortgage market whose growth was driven, in part, by the belief that homeownership is a right that all Americans are entitled to as part of the American dream. The perpetuation of this belief is dangerous to the United States economy because homeownership has for so long been unobtainable for the majority of non-white Americans, as one of the only paths to this American dream for many minorities is through high-risk home loans that threaten the stability of the economy.

Set during the gruelling Great Depression of the 1930’s, John Steinbeck’s touching novella Of Mice and Men focuses on the working class of America and two men, George Milton and Lennie Small, as they work on a ranch in hopes of owning their own land. Set in the dusty town of Soledad, California, Steinbeck’s classic characters offer a parable about what it means to be human. George and Lennie's ambition of owning their own ranch, and the obstacles that stand in the way of that ambition, reveal the impossibility of the American Dream, while the loneliness and isolation of the members of the ranch offer a true insight into the nature of human existence, especially when the weaknesses of the characters cause them to destroy those more

The American dream for minorities is a difficult to obtain goal because for minorities, everyday obstacles prevent them from obtaining this dream that was never meant for them. Despite the difficulties, there exists many instances throughout history of people from a wide variety of cultural backgrounds have fought for the simple right to be able to have the chance to reach that goal. Ironically, during one of the most devastating times in our nation’s history, historian James Truslow Adams coined the term “The American Dream”. The term American Dream is defined as the ideals of freedom, equality, and equal opportunity traditionally held to be available to every single American Citizen regardless of race, gender or sexual preference. My

The belief of the American Dream has been around for several years, but still the question lingers: is the “promise” to the immigrants being fulfilled? Many argue that America is the land of greater opportunities and freedom. However, in the news, the only stories that are reported are the immigrant success stories, not the ones who failed. It does not take into account the new ideas erupting in the government, and the racial bias immigrants are faced with. Although some may claim that the American dream is being fulfilled because of the high number of immigrants that are economically successful, that is not the case because of racial discrimination, education level, and the changing immigration laws.

Millennials see this option, of internet fame, all that can come from it, and they want to create their own version. A heavy, unsupervised desire to independently indulge in every greatness earth dangles in front of them. That is why we see a rise in AirB&B, in which individuals can rent out their own apartments or houses to tourists. Millennials want to adventure but with a sense of home. Instead of a hotel, they want a cozy two bed room space with a full kitchen and working televisions, and of course Wi-Fi; so, they can google “trendy places near me” and accomplish the perfect Instagram feed.

As a Fourteen year old girl, I imagined what it would be like to have my life together and own a home. I dreamt of having a modest home, two stories, cozy enough for a family. It would have a back porch, designed of a burnt umber wooden floor and white accent trim. From the porch, you could look upon a serene view of open green spaces. Everything about it would have been beautiful, but now, I am twenty-two and feel I would be lucky to ever move out of my parents house in the next five to seven years which is a very pessimistic sentiment to have, but I know I’m not the only one who feels this way. Many of my friends and colleagues have expressed similar viewpoints. It therefore begs the question, what makes this so daunting for us, my generation, the millennial generation, to have a brighter outlook on achieving our dreams, the American dream?

As a baby boomer, I feel the “American Dream” of owning a home is still possible, just a little harder to obtain for the Millennial generation. The Millennial generation grew up in changing times as compared to the generations before them. They were on the forefront of the technology age, using their minds instead of the hands to interact with others. They were not challenged to be independent as soon as they turned 18. Most Millennials were not pushed to experience banking, delayed gratification, and struggling for basic needs. They were not taught in high school what a budget was, how to fill out a check, or how to even file their taxes. Most did not even obtain a serious job until after high school graduation.

One of the key barriers that keep the black people repressed is the PG County police, keeping the minority in constant fear. Coates lists a few incidences, “killed Elmer Clay Newman, then claimed he’d rammed his own head . . . shot Gary Hopkins and said he’d gone for an officer’s gun . . . beaten Freddie McCollum half-blind and blamed it . . . (75). The police are suppose to serve as protection and enforcing the law. However, it is primarily the white class that is being protected from the black class. The U.S. society views black people as dangerous and justify having them stay in ghettos and projects where they cannot interrupt white order. This is a theory that Coates comes across that ‘safety’ was a higher value than justice, perhaps the highest value” (84). Having police carrying out the dirty work and then ultimately forgetting and moving on is a component of the American Dream. The Dream is viewed as clean and beautiful, the United States does not want to acknowledge the bloody barrier that has put up against the black people that prevent them from reaching the Dream. Because to confess to the horrendous acts that the U.S., and thus the American Dream is build upon will ruin the pedestal it has been placed upon.